Brexit

Peter Whittle: To ask the Mayor for an update on his campaign for a second referendum on Brexit.

The Mayor: As I said at the time, the December 2019 General Election result meant a further referendum on the terms of the the proposed Brexit deal was no longer possible. And - as I assume Assembly Member Whittle is aware - we left the European Union (EU) in January.
I am focused on playing my part in slowing the spread of, and ultimately defeating the coronavirus, and in the longer term ensuring our economic and social recovery from this crisis.
In this context, it is clear that the Government should seek to extend the current beneficial transitional trade and related arrangements between the UK and EU beyond the end of this year. Both our own and European resources need to be focused on the far more urgent matter of defeating Covid-19. Otherwise businesses are faced with the impossible challenge of having to plan for any number of potential outcomes to the negotiations, whilst also trying their best to survive the current crisis. Our latest survey appears to show that as the pandemic has progressed London’s businesses are becoming less confident in the prospect of a trade deal, and their capacity to focus on Brexit preparedness is diminishing.

Small business support

Caroline Russell: I have been working with small businesses groups supporting each other in this difficult time. Guardians of the Arches and the East End Trades Guild have suggested establishing a London weighting for business support thresholds which reflects the capital’s higher rateable values. Will you a) advocate to government for a London weighting, and b) create a fund to support any small businesses that are falling through the cracks?

The Mayor: Rents and business rates are two of the most pressing challenges that micro and small businesses are currently facing. I have written to the Chancellor to request that the Government retrospectively raise the rateable value thresholds for London-based applicants of the Small Business Grant Fund to £25,000 and the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant to £150,000. My officers have been in dialogue with Guardians of the Arches and the East End Trades Guild and the concerns raised by these bodies, as well as many other small business organisations such as the Federation of Small Businesses and Business Improvement Districts, make a pressing case for the Government to raise the eligibility threshold.
I have also asked Government to introduce a rent compensation scheme for SMEs that are struggling to pay their rent bills as a result of COVID-19 and called for additional discretionary funding for the many businesses excluded from current Government support. The recent announcement of a Local Authority Discretionary Grants Fund is very welcomed but the funding levels proposed will only meet a fraction of the demand.
I am currently considering what funding City Hall can provide to support business that do not have access to government support, but such is the scale of this crisis, the GLA will not have anywhere near the resources required to support all the businesses that need help. Therefore, Government should further review its support packages to make sure no businesses are left without support they need.
One of the biggest problems with the Government’s grant scheme is the £51,000 rateable value threshold for retail, leisure and hospitality businesses which does not take into account the higher rental values in inner London and central London so many small firms in these sectors are ineligible for the £25,000 grant payments. Equally many SMEs in other sectors occupy premises with a rateable value above £15,000 or aren’t the named ratepayer so don’t qualify for the £10,000 grant for firms in receipt of small business rate relief. We need a major rethink about how business rates generally operate England – and I will be calling for this formally once the Government launch their fundamental review of business rates as a tax in England later this year. The devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have been able to introduce more targeted grant and rates relief schemes which reflect their local economies – London and the other English regions should have those same powers in future.